President Kaljulaid: Sweden and Estonia are closely intertwined

President of the Republic of Estonia, Kersti Kaljulaid, is today on a working visit to the Kingdom of Sweden where she met with heads of state, entrepreneurs and the Estonian community.

"There are not many nations who would understand Estonians as well as Swedish people do. The economies of Sweden and Estonia are closely intertwined, as are the histories of thousands of our families," said President Kaljulaid after her meeting with Swedish leaders. Apart from economic issues, the future of Europe, bilateral defence co-operation and Estonia's priorities during the Presidency of the Council of the European Union were discussed at the meeting; and the importance of co-operation in the Baltic Sea region was emphasised.

According to President Kaljulaid, Estonians and Swedish people share a very similar understanding of the world. "We have chosen a slightly different way for securing peace, – we are in NATO and Sweden is not – however we share the same values," said President Kaljulaid. "The same can also be said about the Eastern Partnership and Ukrainian issues."

The Estonian Head of State met with the leaders of large-scale Swedish enterprises on a Tallink ship. "Sweden is the largest investor and export market for Estonia. The dynamics of these relationships have of course somewhat changed – having started as a country that offered cheap labour, we have now reached the position of an equal partner – but the relations remain as strong. Companies in both countries seek new co-operation models and succeed in finding them," President Kaljulaid remarked after the meeting.

During her first work visit to Sweden, the Head of State of Estonia met with the King of Sweden, Carl XVI Gustaf; the Prime Minister, Stefan Löfven; the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Margot Wallström; and the Speaker of the Riksdag, Urban Ahlin. In the afternoon, President Kaljulaid will visit a local Estonian School. Yesterday she met with representatives of the Estonian community in Sweden.